Sunday 16 December 2007

lazy weekends...

"...and...mmm,... a mushroom omelet, thank you :)"... Tiny place in a tiny street, in the old part of the city centre and almost impossible to see it's a lunch room from the outside... however very popular! It did not take long to figure out why, the staff is very friendly and helpful, the food is good and the atmosphere relaxed. What more do you want? Oh, and there's a tin box with cookies on the table... for the coffee ;)

No, I'm not going to say that that place was better than shoes, my standards are very high when it comes to this... No, it's a lazy weekend that IS better than shoes! You know, those weekends that you basically do nothing but you manage to have a memorable time with your closest friends, those weekends that leave you with a smile on your face...

This kind of a weekend was last weekend for me. Saturday brunch with my better half and his closest friends, friends that have become my friends too, having mushroom omelet, then go to the hairdresser's for an extreme look (it was extreme, I swear, I had a million hair pins on my head, little loops of hair and pointy parts that looked like a fountain... overall it was great!!... though indeed, it sounds that someone took the piss on me...) then shopping, some chores and then home to watch a movie, cuddled on the sofa... And in the evening, the Christmas party at work, the usual suspects there but not bad as such... my shoes got great compliments anyway, patent leather Dolce & Gabbana with a kitten heel... so cute!!

Then Sunday, laziest than Saturday, having a late brunch at home, then another film, a nap and then cooking for more friends, welcomed for a cosy evening at home... A few things can be better than that, the relaxed conversation with like minded people accompanied by a glass of wine and a home cooked meal! And, yes, all this left me with a big smile on my face!

Surely the smile only lasted 'till Monday morning, then reality stroke and I found myself driving to work singing the well known hymn by Sir Bob Geldof and trying not to hit the stupid cow that decided to change lanes on the motorway without any indication whatsoever!! While I was almost next to her!! In the lane she wanted to go!! But, since I promised I would write about positive experiences here, I will leave the details of that out of this post...

Ps. may you all have a great weekend soon :)

Monday 10 December 2007

red stiletto heels and hot chocolate...

"...yes, they're lovely but, darling, can you walk on them???"....
And is this question (or the answer to this question) important in the big scheme of things?... And if the question (and the respective answer) is important, is it so important to deserve to be asked every time one falls in love with a pair of Stella McCartney red stiletto heels?! No! Absolutely not! Because, ok, call me crazy, but even if presently it appears to be a bit difficult (nothing is impossible you see...) to actually manage to wear the shoes and walk the (what appears to be) miles between the sofa and the flat's door, perhaps, just perhaps in the not so distant future a miracle will take place and indeed, you will manage!!

And after that, the sky is the limit! You could even be able to go outside the house in them! And, yes, go dancing! Always wearing them!! And in any case, it's not like they will loose their value, they're all time classics, sort of like "Casablanca" or the Big Mac!! Moral of the story: get them! Even if they live in the closet, third shelf from the bottom, for the last 11 months like mine do... I know, I'm supposed to write about things that are better than shoes in this blog, but I figured this pair deserved to be mentioned since it's not being worn!

But going back to my main reason for this blog, this week's post is about hot chocolate!! And, yes, hot chocolate IS better than shoes! Was out in the city centre the other day, yes, even The Hague has a city centre (stop laughing...) and the weather was, again, shite, the rain was not exactly falling but more like floating and going with the wind, just making sure that even your well protected socks get soaking wet, and wanted to go shoe-shopping as one of my favourite shops had started with the sales. But, as the rain got stronger, I took shelter in a nearby café (which incidentally was inside a department store....) and as I was about to ask for the usual decaf cappuccino, I saw a 12-year-old girl leaving the counter with a huge glass cup of hot chocolate with a mountain of whipped cream on top!!!

Needless to say, that became my order! And, oh... bliss!! Cold, rainy, dark afternoon, totally wet and cranky and the moment I took the first sip... happiness! Sweet, warm, thick, full the chocolate and I stayed there, slowly drinking the, what seamed to be, gods' nectar and when I lit up a ciggy I completely forgot all about the shoes and the sales and all that and remained there in my little pink cloud, smiling....

I bet you wanna go get one, don't ya?? (hot chocolate or ciggy, you pick... or not ;)

Friday 7 December 2007

Oh, Christmas tree...

…and then came the package!! Big, mysterious… Closed!! Well…to be honest, who would want a package to arrive open, right? No, it came properly, the next day from ordering, as promised. And very competently, it opened the door of the building on its own, which by the way for about a week would not open not even when you had a key (which I doubt the package had!!!), took the lift up and then waited patiently by the flat’s door for me to arrive from work and bring it home…

What more could anyone ask from a Christmas tree???!! Not much! Oh, yes, I did not mention that… the package contained the tree. Bought online, mind you, the wonderful world of digital shopping! Though seriously tempted to spend the money on the cutest pair of red patent leather ballerinas, I resisted and instead ordered a state of the art (and extremely difficult to assemble as was realised a bit late) Christmas tree ☺

And very well I did! Because, indeed, though perhaps only around this time every year, a Christmas tree IS better than shoes! It sparkles and shines and fills up the room and brings back the memories of Christmases past and presents received and kisses given and this feeling of being a child again! A warm feeling that everything will be ok merely because it’s Christmas! Not to mention that it hides the remaining boxes, still residing in my living room after the recent removal… but, ok, maybe that does not apply to you all…

So, in case you don’t have a Christmas tree yet, my advise is: get one! And get lots of lights and ornaments and packages with presents to put underneath and then just seat in the dark and enjoy its company with a glass of wine…

Ps. …and as for those of you who don’t like neither Christmas nor Christmas trees… I have one word: Scrooge! But… may you have people to love you just as you are ☺

Tuesday 4 December 2007

how it all started...

“Love, I will pay you the best compliment ever... you are better than shoes!!!”
…that’s how it all started.

Any of you fashionistas out there can understand what a great compliment that is!
And indeed, my boyfriend IS better than shoes. He’s sexier than Louboutin’s red soles, discreetly appearing behind stiletto heels, he’s sweeter than Miu Miu’s ballerinas, more precious than Manolo’s mary janes (the “urban myth”…) and when I cuddle next to him it’s more comfortable that Prada’s rubber sole boots! … Not that any of this is of your interest, after all, you all can’t have him, but what the heck, this is my blog and I can write about whatever I want ☺

The point is that there are things that are better than shoes… just very rare! And the quest for them is about as difficult as the quest for the holly grail, if not more difficult given the fact that at least for that there are many clues as to where it can be found… though sometimes they are contradictory… as anything else having to do with religion… anyway, it’s a hard thing!

This intrigues me! And it’s the reason why I started this blog, to try and find things that are really worth in life, things that are better than shoes! Not only things anyone can (or cannot but would love to be able to) buy but experiences, feelings, images, smells, all that puts a smile on our faces and makes us say… “mmmm, that's goooood!!”

I’m an expat, living in The Netherlands… not the interesting part… certainly not the part that the millions of tourist visiting the country every year have at the top of their list… I live in The Hague… yeah, the place with the court and the jail, that’s right!!

Living here is… how to say… mmmm… ah, yes, boring!! So my quest is going to be a challenge… not much to do, not much to see and moreover it rains so much and so often here that I will be stalled many a time and depressed many more. But I commit myself to this, to share with you only the positive, only the things that are, indeed, better than shoes ;)

Ps. Not my boyfriend, mind you, he’s all mine!!